• 0 Posts
  • 13 Comments
Joined 2 years ago
Cake day: August 14th, 2023
  • Tippon@lemmy.dbzer0.comtoLinux@lemmy.ml•Please, FOSS world, we need something like ChromeOSEnglish
    9·
    1 month ago

    I think at least part of the problem has been the built in expiry date, and the fact that so many off brand Chromebooks are absolute shit. They have tiny screens and low specs, and struggle with multiple web pages open.

    I fancied one myself to take out and about, as I do most of my work on my PC, but they all seemed to have under 13 inch screens, and a five year shelf life. I like to research my family tree, so have a few tabs open, but the lack of memory would kill them and make it painful to do.

  • Tippon@lemmy.dbzer0.comtoLinux@lemmy.ml•Please, FOSS world, we need something like ChromeOSEnglish
    393·
    1 month ago

    You’re being downvoted, but you’re right.

    People want something simple. Something that just runs the basics and automatically backs up online and invisibly.

    The vast majority of people don’t need to have the choice of 17 different browsers, or 43 office suites, and they certainly don’t need the terminal or Powershell, or anything else. They just need a browser and a way to maybe write a letter and view photos. Maybe a way for the kids to do their homework. If their laptop spontaneously combusts, they want to be able to sign into a new one and have everything put back as it was automatically.

    ChromeOS is perfect for them, apart from being a Google product. It’s something we tend to miss because we’re technically minded, but most people don’t care about computers, and don’t want what we want. They want an appliance. If someone created that system with privacy built in, it could be great :)

  • Tippon@lemmy.dbzer0.comtoLinux@lemmy.ml•Recommend a simple, small cheap laptop < 15" I can chuck in my bag for use in coffee shops!English
    1·
    1 month ago

    I’m in the UK, and I’ve had decent laptops from rapidIT and ITZoo, both .co.uk as far as I remember. I can’t remember which laptop I got from Rapid as it was a few years ago, but the first one had a faulty motherboard, and they swapped the laptop with no issues.

    I had a Stonebook branded Clevo N750BU from ITZoo, which is an i7 based laptop, and Mint works perfectly on it. It’s quite old now, so you’ll probably get a newer one for your budget, but with a RAM upgrade it runs everything I throw at it. I use it for designing and editing logos in Inkscape and Krita, and for editing a website in html, css, and javascript, so anything newer should do it even better :)

  • Tippon@lemmy.dbzer0.comtoLinux@lemmy.ml•I'm going to talk to my local Repair Cafe about switching people over to Linux because of W10 EOL. Is there anything I should mention so they take it on board?English
    6·
    3 months ago

    It’s a great idea, but don’t forget about how these people are going to get support in the future. If something breaks, most helpers (computer shops, kids friends etc) are going to be Windows users.

    Mint can do automatic updates, but both my laptop and PC have had serious issues with version upgrades. My laptop, which is Mint only, asked me to remove a load of software before upgrading, then booted with loads of errors and had to be reinstalled. My PC was mostly fine, but had no sound. It turned out that Mint switched from Pulse Audio to Pipewire, or vice versa, and the old audio manager left config files behind.

    They were both annoying issues more than anything else, but would be difficult for the people in your scenario to get fixed.

    Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to put you off, just checking that you’ve thought of the downsides :)